Nazarbayev’s meeting with Trump sets Kazakhstan as key player in region
By Trend
President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev and President of the USA Donald Trump will meet on January 16 in the White House, amid Nazarbayev’s visit to the United States.
Being the first visit by a Central Asian president to the White House during President Donald Trump’s presidency, Nazarbayev’s meeting allows him to position Kazakhstan as a, if not the key player in the region in Mr. Trump’s mind, political analyst, senior fellow at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University James M. Dorsey told Trend.
“With strains between the United States and Pakistan heightened, Central Asia’s potential as a US logistics hub for Afghanistan increases,” he said.
He added that Central Asia is also significant in terms of Indian-Chinese rivalry and the US’s increasingly close relationship with India.
Touching upon the reaction of Kazakhstan’s closest partner Russia, which currently remains in difficult relations with the USA, Dorsey added that this is a visit that Russia will no doubt monitor closely.
The two presidents are expected to discuss ways to strengthen and enhance strategic partnership on regional security issues and economic cooperation, as well as touch upon Kazakhstan's leadership on several international challenges during its presidency of the UN Security Council.
The press service of the President of Kazakhstan announced that Nursultan Nazarbayev will pay a three-day official visit to the U.S. on January 16-18.
Apart from meeting his American colleague, President Nazarbayev will also participate in the UN Security Council session.
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